‘Knight’ attracts women to theaters as film debuts

By RICHARD L. BOCCIA

Female fans answer the Bat signal.

BOARDMAN — For the ladies who lined up to see the latest Batman film, it was largely the leading men who led them to theaters: Christian Bale as Batman and Heath Ledger as the Joker.

Bypassing the line inside Cinemark Tinseltown at the Southern Park Mall on Friday afternoon, Elise Lega and Stephanie Chesney bought their tickets to “The Dark Knight” two days early.

“It’s a girls’ night out,” Chesney said.

The Youngstown State University student wore a yellow Batman shirt. Still, her mind was on Ledger, whose performance as the Joker is underscored by the actor’s death in January.

“It’ll be really awkward to see [Ledger] in it, but I heard he’s really good,” she said.

For Chesney, seeing the film was more about the hype. “Everybody’s seeing it,” she said.

A line inside for the 5:50 p.m. showing started an hour early and built up to two dozen people before ushers let them into the theater. Fans streamed in until show time.

An hour later, the line was three times as long and stretched out the door to the parking lot.

Janet Glasser, 54, asked her husband to take off work to join her at the movie. “I made him,” said Janet.

She said the Boardman theater wasn’t the closest to her home in Salem, but it was worth the trip to see an epic movie on a big screen — and to see the actors who play the film’s hero and villain.

Janet and her daughter Samantha each wore a T-shirt for their favorite guy in the movie, Janet for Batman and Samantha for the Joker.

Katina Hazimihalis, 20, and her sister Irini, 18, from Campbell, said they see action and special effects films together. Irini said Ledger’s death drew fans to see his last role.

“I heard his performance is like, ‘whoa,’” said Irini, describing herself as a Heath fan.

Her sister is partial to the Batman character. “I like the fact that he doesn’t have super powers,” Katina said.

Jamie Yuhasz, 16, of Boardman, said the caped crusader is her favorite superhero, and Bale isn’t bad either. She owns “Batman Begins,” which saw Bale reinvent the title character.

“I love it. I watch it all the time,” Yuhasz said.

Jeremy Fox, 30, of New Castle, Pa., has witnessed the female fandom twice — he saw “a lot of groups of girls” at his local theater Thursday when “Knight” opened at midnight. What drew them in?

“Heath Ledger made that movie,” Fox said. When he tried to get midnight tickets, he said he found that six theaters around Pittsburgh were sold out.

Tiffany Wright, 22, bought her tickets several hours early for a 10:30 p.m. show. It’s worth it for her, even though seeing the late show means a drive home to East Liverpool in the wee hours of the morning. Is she braving the dark night because she likes Batman?

“No. But I like Heath Ledger,” she said.

According to The Associated Press, tracking firm Media By Numbers said the movie set a box office record for a midnight debut, bringing in $18.5 million Friday from its midnight screening in 3,040 theaters.

That bested the 2005 performance of “Star Wars Episode III: The Revenge of the Sith,” which took in $16.9 million at its debut.

“The Dark Knight,” directed by Christopher Nolan, also stars Christian Bale, Michael Caine, Aaron Eckhart, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Gary Oldman and Morgan Freeman.

rboccia@vindy.com